


Fletchings

by SherlockPendragon501



Category: Arrow (TV 2012)
Genre: Bird-like behavior, Crack Treated Seriously, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, Nesting, Set about a week before the Olicity wedding reception, Winged Oliver Queen, Wingfic, graphic depictions of injuries
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-01-02
Updated: 2018-04-15
Packaged: 2019-02-26 15:05:50
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 8,728
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13238286
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SherlockPendragon501/pseuds/SherlockPendragon501
Summary: A run-in with a metahuman leaves Oliver with a brand-new pair of wings...but it's not so easy to just get up and fly. Oliver works to find out how to work with his wings and what the change means for the team and his life as Oliver Queen.CURRENTLY ON HOLD-----a whole bunch of stuff got deleted and I'm too mad to open up that gosh darned doc





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> AU where William was killed by Adrian Chase before being taken to Lian Yu. (I know it's cruel but having William there would drastically change how everyone, namely Oliver, regards his new form). When presented with his son’s body, Oliver killed Chase, triggering the bombs throughout the island. The building that everyone was in was protected because of Chase’s allies within it (Black Siren and Talia); Oliver’s allies had been expected to be elsewhere or else killed sooner. Because there is no William, there is no Green Arrow Diggle either.
> 
> Background: A metahuman was running wild through Starling City, robbing banks and affluent households, leaving only blood and assorted animals in his wake. Police came to the conclusion that the animals had killed the humans in their way and were investigating accordingly despite Lance and Dinah’s urging them otherwise; Team Arrow had determined that a meta had the powers to turn people into the animals they best represent— “spirit animals” in common language. 
> 
> After an extensive search by Overwatch based on the locations of each robbery or transformation, Team Arrow finally found the metahuman’s hideout and dispatched Green Arrow, Mr Terrific, Black Canary, and Wild Dog.

Two gunshots rang out through the desolate garage, sending ringing echoes throughout the cavern. Silence followed before another scream from the writhing figure on the ground broke through the stunned silence. It was a cry of agony, but the team was relieved because it meant Oliver was still alive. Dinah and Curtis immediately ran towards the huge bloodied mass while Rene hung back, lowering his guns and looking between the metahuman he'd shot and Oliver on the ground— _if,_ in fact, the figure was still Oliver.

 “Green Arrow?” Curtis shouted, trying to dig through the thick cover of... _something_ bony and slathered with blood. Oliver groaned in pain, and Curtis felt what he was touching tense and move around, sleek sticks of light gray, black, and red protruding every which way before settling close and parallel to each other. Curtis finally managed to find Oliver in the mess. His Arrow jacket was long gone but he might as well have been clothed for all the blood he was wearing.

 “Oh no,” Dinah breathed, unfolding one black growth from over her leader.

 “Wild Dog, help us move him!” Curtis ordered.

  
  
As the elevator doors to the lair opened (seeming too slow for everyone’s purposes) and the three new recruits announced themselves with strained and panicked voices and shouts, Oliver grunting or crying out whenever someone mistouched what they had determined to be wings with half-formed feathers. As they couldn't carry him with his new appendages, Oliver was forced to try and walk on his own, his only aid his teammates who were trying to be helpful in carrying some of the weight of the wings. It was hard for Oliver to move nearly at all with the pain of his back having split open and his bones contorted and reformed.

 “Oh my god, Oliver!” Felicity rushed from her swivel chair down the steps and over to the group. Diggle had run over a split second beforehand. Oliver collapsed back onto the ground just as soon as the elevator doors had safely shut.

 “Another moment and the transformation would likely have been complete,” Curtis panted.

 “What happened?!” Felicity crouched down and took Oliver’s face in her hands despite the fact that they'd come away bloody. His eyes were barely open, but when he saw Felicity he smiled slightly, leaned into her touch, and passed out. “Oliver. Oliver!” Felicity yelled.

 Diggle reached down and felt for Oliver's pulse. “He's alive.”

 “What do we do?” Dinah asked.

 “Get him on the table; wash him off. Rene, I need you to get towels. Dinah, get water, lots of it. Curtis, help me.”

 “Will someone _please_ explain to me what's going on?! What happened to him?!” Felicity demanded. She hadn't known what to make of everyone’s cams and no one had thought to explain what was happening as it happened through the comms.

 “Felicity, I think he sprouted wings,” said Diggle, who had looked closer. “The metahuman got him.” At a glance, it would be very hard to tell that the massive black growths flopped on either side of Oliver were wings; they were matted, frazzled and bony, poking up in such a way that the entire form looked almost skeletal.

 “Yeah, I shot the meta partway through, but...it looks like I was too late,” Rene said.

 “Rene, if you were too late, Oliver would be a bird right now,” said Digg. “Towels.” Rene hurried off to fetch them. “Here, Curtis.”

 The two men worked to heave Oliver onto the medical table that Felicity had just wheeled over. They placed him on his front so that his new wings draped over the sides, and all together they unfurled the wings so that they were spread across the floor. They stretched to an impressive size, but admittedly still looked like some slimy and bony carcass.

 “This is really not how I expected my night to go,” said Felicity.

 Dinah returned, tugging hard on a water hose she had just hooked up to a spout in the back. Rene came in carrying a large stack of folded white towels.

 “Dinah,” Curtis said, and Dinah passed him the hose. While the others set to work unfolding and placing towels underneath everything to catch blood and water, Curtis gently rinsed off where the wings protruded from Oliver's back. While it was evident that this place was the source of the blood, the initial wound seemed to have healed itself over, and tiny black pinfeathers lead up to the larger ones on the wings. He and Diggle worked out from Oliver’s shoulder blades with the hose, washing off each feather.

 Diggle noticed how the scars Oliver had on his back had appeared on top of the feathers, stopping the feathers from growing in those places. Rene, who had soon become the ‘water boy’ handed Digg a pitcher of water to use while Curtis had the hose, and he used it to wash off Oliver's head and neck. Oliver's hair, especially on the sides, seemed to have taken on feather-like qualities and had darkened.

 Felicity and Dinah had worked almost to the tips of one wing, Dinah pouring water over the feathers while Felicity cleaned off each of them with her hands. Felicity was shocked at how natural it seemed. She'd cleaned Oliver’s wounds many times, and despite the anomaly that she was cleaning _wings_ instead of gunshot holes, she knew it was Oliver, and was comfortable with it. Her only concern—well, maybe not her _only_ concern—was the amount of blood that Oliver had lost. What was weird, though, was that Oliver didn't look pale and ghostly as he usually did when he lost a lot of blood (because she'd seen that quite a few times, unfortunately). He rather just looked depleted of energy.

 “Hey, Felicity,” Diggle said, motioning her over.

 “I got this,” Dinah said, demonstrating how she could pour and clean at the same time. Felicity nodded and went over to Diggle.

 “What is it?” Felicity asked.

 “Look at this.” Diggle opened Oliver’s eyelid to reveal an iris yellow in the middle and red on the edges, much like a bird’s. The iris had also expanded so it filled more, and most, of the eye. Felicity gasped and moved to see better.

 “Whoa, what?!” Curtis ditched the hose he was holding and threw it to Rene, spraying him. Rene huffed and glared, unimpressed. Curtis jumped over a water bucket and slid in between Diggle and Felicity. “That's amazing! Open the other one—” Curtis didn't actually wait for Diggle to open it, deciding to reach forward and do it himself. He turned Oliver’s head the other way, but just as he reached for his other eye Oliver’s hand suddenly shot out from underneath his wing and grabbed Curtis’s wrist, eyes opening to reveal that both irises had indeed changed color. Oliver's wings flared with this movement, throwing Dinah to the floor and splattering Rene with blood and water.

 “Woah, woah, woah!” Diggle said, putting a hand on Oliver’s shoulder. “It's okay. Settle down, man.”

 Oliver looked over at Dinah, who was sitting up and rubbing her head. He grimaced. “Sorry,” he muttered. He clambered off of the table halfway, still resting his arms and head on the cold metal. He flexed his wings, bringing them closer in to his back. He seemed surprised at this, almost as if he had no actual control over their movement. When took a moment to rest and perhaps collect himself, Rene turned the hose back on so it splashed on the tips of Oliver's less clean feathers, only for the wing to jerk away. Oliver turned his head up and glared.

 “Sorry, hoss. Trying to help.” The wings were practically clean anyway.

 Oliver pushed off from the table to sit on his hunches, pausing momentarily because of the head rush he received. “Give me...give me the thing. Hose,” he said drowsily. Rene cautiously stepped around the wing and handed Oliver the hose, which he used to clean off the undersides of the wings where they met his back.

 “Good thing you can help us now. Frak, that was exhausting. You can also use those black mops of yours to help us clean up the floor later. Actually, don't help us using your wings because we just cleaned those off and using them to mop up the mess would be _incredibly_ counter-intuitive,” Felicity said quickly. She shook her head and took a breath to continue her attempts to clarify herself, but Diggle held up a hand.

 Oliver, who obviously had not been listening, was looking confusedly at his new growths. “...What…” he breathed. No one in the room seemed to know how to answer him.

 Finally, Rene spoke up. “I tried to stop him.”

 “Did a shit job…” Oliver grumbled after a moment, but was somewhat muffled. Felicity had to stop herself from reprimanding him from being so rude because she could understand how Oliver would be confused to say the least. She sent a look to Rene and he nodded knowingly.

 “Oliver, I'm sure there's a solution for this,” Felicity said.

 Oliver didn't respond. In fact, he was hardly aware of what was going around around him. The chatter around him reminded him of where he was and what...was happening, but the throbbing pain that spread throughout his back and neck kept him immersed completely in his own being. There was something that felt wrong, though, (provided there was nothing that felt wrong after having suddenly grown a pair of wings), like something wasn't quite in place. Focusing on the spot, or _knot,_ Oliver was able to pinpoint it. He pushed away from the table and started to stand up. He stumbled as the new weight on his back pulled him backwards, so leaned heavily forward to counter it.

 Seeing Oliver try to stand up and start to fall, Felicity, Diggle, and Dinah rushed forward but stopped nearby when Oliver seemed to steady himself, wings splaying slightly for balance. He then straightened his back and brought his shoulder blades together, sending a cracking, popping sound into the room that alarmed everyone. Oliver stifled a cry at the wave of pain the movement brought which felt much like having a shoulder or leg set, but the relief that eventually came outweighed whatever pain he felt.

 “You okay?” Digg asked Oliver even though he couldn't imagine a way Oliver would be. Oliver continued to look dizzily around the room, focusing on nothing in particular. “Oliver. Hey,” Digg said, stepping in front of his brother to draw his attention. Oliver’s eyes locked onto his and Digg was startled once again by their piercing color. He looked wild, almost feral, but mostly confused. And tired. “Hey, how about you check out for the night. We...we got the meta, and the team’ll handle anything else that shows up.”

 “I—” Oliver croaked. He didn't know quite what he was trying to say, but he knew he wasn't about to protest sleep. He felt heavy. Everywhere. Like his drooped and soaking wet wings would pull him straight into the puddle on the floor. “...Okay.”

 “Let's get you to the back, then,” Digg said, not entirely sure how he'd get him there.

 “I'll get you some sweats,” Felicity offered, hustling away. Oliver was still wearing his leather Green Arrow pants, which were now covered in water. Not good for sleeping in. Felicity wondered where his jacket had gone and figured she'd have to ask Curtis.

 Diggle wasted no words moving to Oliver’s side and putting a hand on his lower back to help him walk, as it was all that was available what with the new wings. Mostly, he just left himself open for Oliver to support himself with. Oliver immediately put a hand on Digg’s elbow, and before the ex-soldier knew what was happening, a sopping wet wing was draped around his shoulders, covering him in water.

 Oliver really wanted to get rid of all the water that had been absorbed into his wings, but wasn't sure if he had the energy to do so or even to figure out how. He allowed Digg to lead him to a bedroom, hardly minding where he was putting his feet. The wing that Digg wasn't supporting dragged limply across the floor, leaving a trail of water.

 The other three team members made to help as well, which Oliver noticed. “No,” he said simply. Dinah, Curtis, and Rene exchanged looks but shrugged it off, saying nothing.

 Diggle and Oliver faced a problem once they made it to the bedroom door. The two looked at each other, realizing at the same time that getting Oliver and his new appendages through the doorway would be difficult to achieve. Digg set Oliver up to lean against the wall while he went and propped the door open. Oliver still looked like he was asleep standing, and Digg internally debated whether he should move him himself or just tell him what to do.

 Oliver seemed to have other ideas, however, and turned sideways, bracing himself against the doorframe. He reached around one of his wings and guided it through the doorway, watching, almost in the third person, as it twitched and the other wing moved slightly to balance. He sidestepped into the room and turned, allowing his wing to knock the door closed. It was oddly satisfying.

 Digg had simply watched as Oliver maneuvered his changed body into the room, stepping out of the way when he should. Once Oliver closed the door, however, Digg immediately knocked on it. “Oliver?”

 A moment of silence. _“Thank you,”_ came Oliver's voice through the door, although Digg had been offering further assistance. ‘Go away,’ Digg quickly translated.

 Felicity bounded over carrying a pair of gray sweatpants and saw the closed door. “Uh…”

 Diggle pushed the door open.

 “Um, here,” Felicity said, stepping under the doorway. Oliver was sitting on a small cot, one of many in the room, but was the one he always used when he needed to catch some sleep in the Lair. Obviously it was the one closest to the door, because that was just how Oliver was and likely would always be. It was a comforting reminder of how--however changed--Oliver was still the same man. The man she’d married.

 Oliver’s wet and glistening wings were folded around him like a cocoon, or perhaps a blanket, as Oliver was supposed to be sleeping. She was unaware of how cold the water was on the brand-new skin underneath his feathers.

 Felicity threw the sweatpants at his feet and almost laughed at the way his wings wiggled a bit showing that he noticed--even if all it was was that he had to move them to see.

 “Thanks,” Oliver mumbled, changing into the pants tiredly as his wings swayed this way and that.

 “Do you want me to stay?” Felicity asked.

 “You have work to do.”

 “Not much. I’ll come in later?”

 “Felicity…” Oliver sighed. He kind of just wanted to sort _himself_ out that night and have his mind catch up with the events that had transpired. And no doubt she wouldn't actually want to sleep close to his sopping wet, frankly disgusting form.

 “If not, that’s okay. I understand.” Felicity waited for a verbal response, but received none. The slightest movement of Oliver’s chin told her that he acknowledged and appreciated what she said. She left the room thinking about if non-verbal communication between married couples could equate that of twins, but was stopped by Oliver’s quiet voice.

 “I love you.”

 Felicity turned around and smiled. “I love you too, Oliver. Feathers and all.”

 After giving his favorite ship their ‘marital space’ and time, Digg knocked lightly on the already open door. “You need anything else? Dry towels, a...shirt?”

 “Some space, maybe. Can you close that?”

 Digg complied. “Are you sure you don’t need anything?”

 The click of a lock gave Digg Oliver’s answer.

 


	2. Chapter 2

_ “So...I was definitely right about Oliver being a bird of prey,”  _ Digg said, voice carrying so Oliver could hear it in the bedroom. He was referencing that night where they’d guessed each other’s spirit animals.

 

_ “Well, we don't technically know if he's a bird  _ of prey,” said Curtis.  _ “How many species of predatory birds have black feathers?” _

 

_ “We also don't know if he's any species in particular. Wasn't the dog like fifty different breeds?”  _ Dinah added.

 

_ “Well...no. It had attributes of at least thirty breeds. It was more of a compilation than a ‘mix,’”  _ said Curtis.

 

_ “You're way too into this,”  _ said Rene.

 

So the whole team was in there. Although Felicity hadn't spoken, Oliver had heard the wheels of her swivel chair gliding across the floor earlier in the morning; besides, he knew she wouldn't leave him. 

 

Oliver had woken up feeling surprisingly normal. He'd fallen asleep on his stomach after spending a lot more energy than he actually had to drape his wings over the sides of the bed, much like he had been positioned on the medical table when the team cleaned him off. Noticing the complete lack of any tired feeling, Oliver worried he'd overslept and decided to get up. He began to push up with his arms, but a pressing weight on his back pushed him back down. It wasn't as if he'd forgotten about his new wings—such was impossible—but the feathers themselves felt more like a heavy blanket than a continuation of his form; they felt almost numb.

 

With great concentration Oliver managed to pull his wings in towards his back, watching them to see if they were doing what he wanted. He stood up and leaned back—over his bed in case he would fall over—to crack his back but stopped abruptly as his wings stretched as well almost of their own accord, knocking over the plain lamp on the bedside table. He sighed and rubbed the crust out of his eyes (which may’ve been blood) before stumbling towards the door. He pulled the door open and attempted to step through but was stopped when his wings hit both sides. He resisted the urge to growl or shout angrily mostly because he figured that this might become a regular thing; it wasn't worth getting frustrated about multiple times.

 

He looked up and the reason he was able to hear their conversation so fully became clear: they were all standing around the bedroom door awaiting him.

 

“Oliver!” Curtis exclaimed when he noticed Oliver turning sideways to better get through the door. He rushed to help, hands all over Oliver’s wings in some sort of frenzy.

 

“No. Curtis, I got it!” said Oliver, and he really did. It didn't take long for him to realize that he had  _ much  _ better control over his wings than he had the night before. The door was hardly an obstacle, and anything Curtis could do to help was nothing to the power and strength he felt converging in his back. Despite not being able to feel his wings completely, he had enough control to know that he could trust them. Curtis’s handling had become uncomfortable as soon as he had started, and Oliver hadn't liked unwanted touching in general even  _ before  _ he had wings— “CURTIS!”

 

Curtis instantly fell backward while everyone else jumped. Oliver looked around, confused for a moment before he noticed the large shadow cast over his teammates. He was suddenly aware of how his wings had raised and spread to their full length in an attempt to intimidate or else throw off Curtis.  _ Worked,  _ Oliver noted. 

 

“Back off,” Oliver said calmly, but there was a subtle aggression and assertion of dominance in his voice.

 

“Point made,” said Curtis. Everyone else nodded, somewhat frightened (except for Felicity who rolled her eyes), but they all stared in awe.

 

“Quite honestly...they're beautiful,” Dinah said, stepping up. She did mind personal space, though, and didn't move to touch Oliver’s wings, for which he was grateful

 

“Yeah,” Diggle breathed. Oliver’s wings spread even further under the compliments, but he said nothing.

 

Felicity finally broke the awed silence, but frowned when she realised she was the one to make Oliver put his wings back down. “I called in this morning to say you'd be out of the office for a ‘medical emergency,’ but the problem still remains: how are we going to disguise those? They're  _ ginormous.” _

 

“‘Disguise’? There's no  _ disguising  _ these, Felicity!” Oliver shouted, cringing when Felicity’s eyebrows knitted together.

 

“Well, I don't think Star City wants a  _ bird  _ for a mayor!”

 

“Don't you understand?” Oliver looked around at all of his team only to see complete lack of recognition on there faces, telling him that they did  _ not  _ understand. “I'm not the mayor anymore. I can't be.” Many people opened their mouths, perhaps to counter him. “I accepted that last night, and I suggest you all try and do the same.” Oliver pushed his way through the group crowded around him, noticing them all jump back to let him through. His wings dragged in the ground behind him as he walked over to a wide clear space in the room where he ruffled his feathers and shook around to get rid of water left from the night before.

 

Curtis slunk over to watch him while Dinah and Rene parted to converse privately. Felicity and Diggle remained.

 

“He's given up,” Felicity whispered.

 

“Not yet. I'll talk to him.” 

 

Felicity sat back down in front of her computer, positioning herself so that if she wanted she could look over her screen and glasses to see her boys talk. She saw Curtis nearby watching Oliver and hissed at him to mind his own business, but she knew, in reality, it sort of  _ was  _ his business, just maybe not on a personal level: they were all part of a team, and when something affects one person it will affect them all—this situation just inflated that concept to 150%, and there was absolutely no way Oliver's wings could be ignored. But Felicity knew that it was her business more than anyone else's, because now it wasn't just her teammate being affected. It was her husband. 

 

She watched as Diggle approached Oliver. He remained in Oliver’s line of sight as he got closer, careful not to come up unexpectedly.

 

“Oliver, man...this is big,” Diggle said, sitting down on a nearby stool and putting on the face that indicated an approaching ‘Digg talk,’ as Felicity had so named it. Digg had a way of keeping Oliver in order that even  _ she  _ couldn't match.

 

“I know that,” said Oliver, not even bothering to draw attention to his wings for emphasis; it was just  _ that  _ obvious already. He wished everyone wouldn't be so focused in him. He'd woken up to the sound of his team talking about him, and now despite having spread apart, they were still following him and his every action. He saw it in their glances, their positioning in the room, and their small snippets of conversation that were not nearly long enough to introduce a new topic.

 

“I know you know that,” Diggle said. “But you can't let it control your entire life.”

 

“No, they'll only control  _ half  _ of my life. John, I'm  _ trying  _ to see the good in this! There is no way I can be mayor, but this could take my life under the hood to a whole new level.”

 

“Oliver, there has to be way you can still be mayor. We could...we could bind them underneath a coat,” Diggle said, but sounded disbelieving of his own words. “Or we could hook up with STAR labs and have them removed.”

 

“No,” Oliver said forcefully. They weren't going to take his wings, bind them in any way. He'd be trapped.  _ They couldn't...they can't... _

 

Diggle was taken aback when he saw the expression on Oliver’s face, which had changed drastically from a couple seconds before. He suddenly looked sickened…and afraid.

 

“No? Oliver—”

 

Oliver turned away, wings following and fanning a surprisingly powerful wind onto Diggle. Digg hopped off his stool and jogged to catch up with Oliver. He reached out and just when his fingertips brushed Oliver’s feathers, Oliver turned around.

 

“I understand that you're trying to help me, but Digg: you can't. This is...this is the new me. I'm not going to change that. Or try.”

 

“It's not like you to give up so easily.”

 

“ _ I'm  _ not the one giving up.” Oliver said. “I'm willing to put them to the test. What I'm  _ not  _ willing to do is cower away from change.”

 

Digg felt his temper rising. “What do you think you're going to do? Fly around Star City? You can barely move around with those things, Oliver!”

 

“‘Those things’ are part of my body and I will control them just as I do the rest of myself. Here, I'll prove it.” Oliver bounded over to the mat where the team often trained and sparred. “Fight me.”

 

Diggle sighed.  _ If he wants to learn the hard way… _ He spotted Dinah a distance behind Oliver and beckoned her over slightly with his head, which Oliver was oblivious to. Dinah nodded, apparently getting his message.

 

Oliver had his wings out in front of himself almost like a wall, but when Digg lunged forward they parted. Digg managed to attempt a few hits but Oliver had pulled his arm painfully behind his back in seconds, kicking him down to his knee. Oliver was about to say something when Dinah ran up behind his back, putting her staff around his neck so she had him in a choke hold. Oliver's wings flailed and batted helplessly, unable to reach or shake off Dinah. 

 

“That's enough,” Oliver strained. Diggle nodded to Dinah, who released Oliver.

 

“Just a few days ago you took the whole team out in one go,” Dinah stated. 

 

Oliver spun around to face Dinah, not caring in the slightest when he his her with his wing, causing her to stumble. “Are you just here to wound my confidence?!”

 

“No. We’re just trying to show you that if you go out into the field, you'll be in danger,” Digg answered for her as calmly as he could.

 

“So I can't be the mayor and I can't be the Green Arrow.”

 

“At least not until we find a solution,” Digg said. 

 

Felicity came up from behind Diggle. “And we  _ will  _ find a solution.”

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  



	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> One day I will write something other than angsty conversations.

Felicity remained near Oliver when Digg and Dinah cleared away. Oliver was eyeing her, obviously suspecting that she had something to say, but he did seem interested.

“You—you want to go out?” Felicity asked quietly.

“Yes! I really don't see why not. Just because you guys—”

“No. Don't you ‘you guys’ me. I will back whatever play you decide to make, but I just want to make sure you're safe,” Felicity said aggressively. Oliver had created an argument in his head, but it dissipated at Felicity’s words.

“—What?”

“Oliver, we decided a long time ago to trust each other’s judgement, and I trust yours. If you think you can go out in the field, I'll let you, but I think we should consider all aspects of what we are doing before we do them.”

“Well, yeah. It's not like I'll be able to go out tonight, and I don't intend to. I need to...figure them out first.” Oliver rolled his shoulders, moving his folded wings in a small circle.

“By ‘figure them out’ you mean fly, right? Because that's going to be, like, epic. I've been researching different feather movements in flight, but I'm beginning to think that it might be more of a subconscious thing like how we balance on two feet...why are you looking at me like that?”

“So this isn't...weird...for you?”

“Well obviously there’ll be changes but...that's life, right? Question is: is it weird for you?” Felicity paused. (Well, maybe not ‘paused’; she was Felicity; she took a breath). “Well, of course it's weird for you. You have two new appendages and orange eyes.”

“Felicity, I thought you wanted me to still be mayor,” said Oliver, still rather stuck on his first question.

“If you really don't think that's the right thing to do, then I agree with you,” Felicity said simply.

“I appreciate that,” Oliver said, nodding. “...What do you mean ‘orange eyes’?!”

“Oh! Uh…” Felicity hovered around him for a moment, hands buzzing; she'd intended to lead him by pushing his back but, well, wings. Instead, she awkwardly grabbed his thumb and lead him into the bathroom. He went quickly along with her. “Your back isn't the only thing that changed.”

Oliver froze when he saw himself in the mirror. Felicity watched his pupils focus through the reflection. She had to admit that his new eyes and hair were difficult to get used to—the wings themselves seemed almost surreal; it was the details that were perplexing.

Finally, Oliver shrugged slightly. “Not the...biggest thing.” He sighed quietly when he ran a hand through his hair, which was similar in look and feel to the feathers on a rooster’s hackles.

“You don't have to be okay with this, you know,” Felicity said, putting a hand on Oliver’s shoulder. She got no response. “You can react. This doesn't happen every day.” Still no response. “...Well, can you feel any changes, like on the inside? I read that birds can see a few more colors than humans.”

“I can see probably ten times better, if that's what you mean,” Oliver said, looking at some far off point through the open door, as if to test himself.

“That's great! For archery, it's great!” Felicity exclaimed, jumping a little and clapping her hands. She was exaggerating all her positive reactions for Oliver's sake.

“And for looking at my beautiful wife across the room.” Oliver's wing came up behind Felicity and nudged her back lightly. He watched the red and pink rise in Felicity’s cheeks. “No new colors, though. Sorry.”

“Those’ll look awesome through the mask, by the way,” Curtis’s voice jutted suddenly, making both Felicity and Oliver jump. Obviously he was referencing the eyes and not the hair.

“Get, Curtis!” Felicity snapped before covering her mouth in horror. “Sorry,” she whispered.

“No, it's fine. I'll come back at a better time,” Curtis said, dismissing himself.

“No, you're good, Curtis. Actually, I could probably use your help,” Oliver said, waiting for Felicity to leave the bathroom first so that he could squeeze through the door frame. “You mentioned my suit.”

“Oh yeah. I'm not entirely sure how you ripped through kevlar, but yeah. It's gone. Making a new one will be…” Curtis walked in a circle around Oliver, trying to see his new figure from all angles, but Oliver kept turning to face him, oblivious. “...Interesting.”

“I'm just surprised—and glad—that my wings didn't grow in place of my arms,” Oliver said.

“Yeah, that's weird,” Felicity agreed.

“And they're so big,” Oliver said. He sounded exasperated, probably because the size of his wings was making nearly every movement difficult. “We’ve met winged metas before but they...I don't know.”

“That's because your body is a lot more dense than that of a bird's—your wings need to compensate, see. The metas’ bodies probably adjusted.”

“Mm.”

“I'll go work on designs…” Curtis said. “And I will probably come back to get some new measurements.”

Oliver nodded and then frowned; he still didn't like the idea of Curtis—or anyone—touching his wings, although he still wasn't quite sure why. It could be that he didn't want the feathers out of line, or that he was wary of Curtis’s scientific curiosity, but Oliver still felt like there was something else that he didn't quite understand.

  
Three hours later, only Felicity and Oliver were in the lair. Rene and Dinah went off to work, Diggle went home to see Lyla and JJ, and Curtis had gone to work on him and Felicity’s implants. Felicity had taken the day off because she needed to stay with Oliver.

Oliver spent most of the time stalking about and flapping his wings experimentally. He also walked back and forth through doorways, practicing at a time when he felt he could; when no one else but Felicity was around. Felicity couldn't help but notice that her husband was getting incredibly antsy, and that he kept looking up at the rafters for some reason.

“You know, I missed you walking around shirtless all the time,” Felicity finally commented, pushing off on her leg to send her chair into the middle of the raised platform in the middle of the room.

Oliver smirked and bounded up the steps. “I don't know what I can wear.”

“I’d help you...but…” Felicity continued staring at Oliver’s torso, and he sighed.

“You want me to freeze, then?”

Felicity stood up. “Hey, I stay in here in sleeveless dresses almost every day. Plus, now you're attached to two giant blankets.” She patted the portion of Oliver’s right wing that was just above his shoulder.

“So you want me to bundle up…” Oliver concentrated on pulling his wings as close to his body as possible so that they covered his front, head, and most of his back “...like this?”

“Aww, you're cocooned,” Felicity giggled. She gently parted two wings, intending to poke her head into the ‘cocoon,’ but was startled by a brief kiss. Apparently, his head was a lot closer than she had thought. “I just wanted to take a peep.” She laughed at her joke. Oliver looked unimpressed. “You're right. How about ‘beak-a-boo’?”

Oliver exhaled, smiling a little. He was admittedly amused by his ridiculous wife. He kissed the top of her head and walked off yet again, this time to sit down on a bench near the training area. He kept half-spreading and retracting his wings, moving them from side to side, and up and down. His back was turned, and he appeared to be focusing.

“Do your mind if I go get us lunch?” Felicity asked. Oliver shook his head. “Okay. I'll be back in an hour.” She texted the rest of the team to meet her at Big Belly Burger.

 

 

 

 

 

 


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the wait!

The team (minus Oliver) all rode home from Big Belly Burger in the same black van, trying not to indulge in their food. Diggle was driving a long route back to the bunker to give them all a decent space for talking.

 

“Hey, I thought you didn't want him to give up on being mayor?” Rene said when Felicity briefly described the conversation she’d had with Oliver earlier.

 

“I think he knows what he's doing. Besides, hiding wings that huge wouldn't be easy,” Felicity said.

 

“We all have to admit: this change could give us all a _huge_ advantage on the field,” Dinah said.  

 

“... _If_ he learns to use them,” Diggle said, tapping on the steering wheel.

 

 _“When,”_ Felicity snapped.

 

“I say we treat him as a Metahuman, not as an accident. Digg, I know you're worried about him not being able to handle his wings. You don't think they were designed to work with his body. But Curtis said: they adapted so that they'd be able to carry him. And we all know Oliver; will make them work. We have to trust him.” Dinah said this with a force. There was a murder of assent throughout the van, although some of it was reluctant.

 

After a few minutes of anxiety and ideation over how get Oliver out of the Mayor’s office without incriminating him, the team arrived back at their base. As soon as the elevator doors opened, Rene bit voraciously into his triple-decker hamburger, making Dinah gag. There was one prominent sound in the room.

 

“Oliver? What the hell?!” Felicity dropped her Big Belly Burger bag.

 

Oliver was halfway up the salmon ladder, wings flapping wildly as they attempted to carry his weight and stabilize his position. The flapping sent sporadic and powerful winds throughout the room, which had already knocked over nearby weapons and such. Dinah’s costume manakin had been blown over, and the medical table from the night before had rolled across the room. He missed a rung and the pole he was holding onto clattered to the floor; Oliver grabbed onto one of the sides of the salmon ladder instead, climbing up it.

 

“Oh hey, love,” Oliver said, panting.

 

“What are you doing?!” Felicity demanded. He seemed very determined to get somewhere. If Felicity had to guess, she'd say maybe he shot an arrow into the rafters or something and was on his way to retrieve it.

 

“Uh…”

 

Felicity looked up into the rafters and immediately saw a great big pile of... _something_ festering there. There were long wooden beams connecting the ones that supported the lair, bound together with fabric, duct tape, and string. A large sheet sagged down through the gaps in the beams, and towels and spare sweatshirts were visible around the edges. The whole thing achieved a shallow bowl shape and was at least twenty feet in the air.

 

Everyone else followed Felicity’s gaze to Oliver’s new creation.

 

“Is that…” Dinah started.

 

“...A _nest?”_ Diggle finished. All were gaping.

 

Oliver made the final leap into his nest, wings fluttering madly. “It's...uh…” Oliver wasn't sure how to answer. He didn't make it thinking about a nest. He'd just figured he needed a place to sleep that was big enough for his wings and high up so that he could see everything that went about in the room. He'd added towels for shape, assorted clothes and bedding for comfort, shoes and pipes for structure, and the tape and hose sort of held it all together. It made perfect sense. He even had his bow and quiver and some spare food up there. “Well, I guess you could call it that.” He shrugged.

 

“...Okay,” Felicity breathed. “Would you come down, though? We brought food.”

 

Oliver jumped down, landing on the floor with a grace the team hadn't seen since he'd gotten his wings. The wings probably slowed his fall, catching wind and sending it instead horizontally across the room and causing Dinah’s hair to blow around.

 

Diggle picked up Felicity and Oliver’s hamburger bag and handed it to Felicity.

 

“So obviously you've had some mental changes too. Different mindset, with the instincts of a bird. Probably a bird of prey considering how high you made your nest,” Curtis said.

 

“Yeah, you could say you're a ‘bird brain,’” Felicity laughed, earning a high-five from Curtis. She handed a burger to a less-than-amused Oliver. “Sorry,” she whispered.

 

“It's a vantage point,” Oliver said, annoyed.

 

“Uh huh.” Curtis nodded a little too much.

 

“Hey...is—are those my boots?!” Rene was looking intently up at Oliver's nest and its contents.

 

Oliver snorted and bit into his burger. “Not anymore.”

 

Curtis started laughing hysterically. Rene glared at Curtis but looked defeated. Weird as it was—because it was Oliver who stole from _him—_ Rene didn't want to risk stealing anything from Oliver. Especially because he probably couldn't get up to the nest.

 

“Ha! You...are those my jeans?” Curtis stopped laughing. Diggle instinctively looked over to see if any of the suits had disappeared as well, but none had.

 

Rene smirked at Curtis and shoved a few his french fries into his mouth, having finished his burger startlingly quickly. Curtis glared and tried to grab a fry. When Rene whipped his hand away, a few went flying to the floor.

 

Everyone jumped away when Oliver _dove_ down onto the floor after the fries, bounding on one with an animalistic vigor. He sat cross legged on the ground—wings arranged around his form like a vast, heart-shaped throne—and munched on one of the four fries he’d collected as if there was nothing unusual.

 

“Oliver—ew,” Felicity said. He looked up and cocked his head, confused. “It's debatable how clean that floor is. If you want french fries, have some of our own.”

 

“Okay,” he said. He kept eating the french fries from the floor. There was something better about them being on the ground, Oliver thought. They were all spread out so he could see each of them. Felicity handed him the small carton of fries, raising her eyebrows.

 

Curtis looked like he was about to start laughing again. Felicity sent him—and everyone else—a glare that told them not to comment or else. This seemed to frighten both Curtis and Rene off, and they walked away to the corner. _Probably to snicker in private,_ Felicity thought angrily.

 

Oliver looked around, seeing Diggle looking at him from the corner of his eye. Everyone else was standing while they ate, and Oliver knew that that was what he was supposed to be doing. It had been harder to keep standing since he got his wings—either having to lean forward or constantly strain his core. Sitting was easier. It wasn't a “bird thing.” Oliver figured everyone else thought it _was,_ so he made to stand up, but Dinah plopped down on the ground and ate her burger casually.

 

Oliver knew Dinah was trying to make him feel normal, and appreciated it. To not embarrass her, he remained on the ground.

  


_Vwoosh._

 

Over the next few hours, Oliver grew more and more restless. Now, he'd taken to shooting arrows to test out his improved eyesight. And, apparently, because there were ‘no other appropriate ranges’ in the bunker, ‘testing out his improved eyesight’ required Oliver to shoot through the middle of the room, where Felicity and Curtis were working. Oliver’s wings swayed and brushed the ground as he stalked back and forth across one side of the room, shooting at targets he usually usually used from a much closer distance.

 

Felicity trusted Oliver not to hit her or her computers, but was growing increasingly aggravated with the sound. Curtis, who knew that he was technically safe, couldn't stop ‘involuntary muscle spasms,' or flinches, whenever an arrow whizzed nearby.

 

“Oliver, could you please stop?” Felicity finally said. She made eye contact with her husband who lowered his bow. He looked slightly put out but set his bow down on the nearby table along with his arrows.

 

Oliver sighed. “Can you give me a job?”

 

“Well...you're not going to be much help to us over here,” Curtis said. He was working on re-wiring a T-Sphere and designing a new suit for Oliver simultaneously while Felicity was busy monitoring satellite footage of a warehouse she they believed was a potential criminal hothouse. Dinah had gone off to work again, and Rene and Diggle had just left. “What, you run out of arrows to sharpen?” Curtis looked back to what he was doing. And after some internal debate, so did Felicity. She figured he didn't want too much attention, as usual.

 

“Yes. And guns to clean, security systems to reinforce, news to watch, criminal files to study, polls and statistics to review, and, quite frankly, people to talk to!” Oliver knew he was getting angry, and didn't particularly care. He couldn't understand why they were all acting like his wings were normal, that there was _anything_ normal going on!

 

Felicity looked up, eyes wide, startled by his tone.

 

“Well, sorry I've spent an hour trying to make a top for you so that you don't have to go around like…” he gestured to Oliver’s bare torso “...that!”

 

“Yeah, it's distracting,” Felicity tried to joke.

 

“Very distracting,” Curtis agreed. Felicity shut him down with a protective glare.

 

Oliver huffed started to walk away.

 

Felicity frowned, but then an idea struck her. “Hey, how about tonight we drive out to that lot where Barry used to test his speed?”

 

Oliver turned to face them once more, and although the actual change in his face was slight, he looked very much appeased. “I'd like that.”

 


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it took me so long! I've been having trouble with writing the newbies when I just want to PUNCH THEM IN THE TEETH :) I'm working on finding a way to...shuffle them along...without having them causing all the drama they did in canon. Anyways, this was what my jet-lagged brain could come up with. I hope you enjoy!
> 
> P.S.--- All of that confusing Olicity stuff was NOT intentional. I just don't know how romantic relationships go and I needed an outlet for bird puns :/ Sorry if I'm not very consistent, but I'll try!

“I still don't understand why we all have to come,” Rene whispered to Dinah and Felicity. It was nighttime, and they were standing on the sidewalk outside Oliver's old campaign office.

 

“We need to show support for Oliver!” Felicity whisper-yelled back.

 

“You say that, and then all you do is make jokes about him,” said Dinah, clearly agitated. Felicity spun to look at her.

 

Felicity looked furtively towards the van, where Diggle and Curtis were trying to help Oliver comfortably fit his wings inside while still having room for everyone else. “I'm trying to make light of the situation! You know how easily Oliver starts hating himself; we can't let that happen!” Felicity argued.

 

“Then I can't see how insulting him is going to help,” Dinah retorted.

 

“I am  _ not  _ insulting him!” Felicity said a little too loudly. Rene started edging towards the van and away from the two women.

 

“You called him ‘bird brain.’ How is that  _ not  _ an attack?” Dinah hissed.

 

“He's pretty smart;  he  _ knows  _ I can't mean that badly!”

 

“Weren't you  _ just  _ saying how easily he hates himself?”

 

Felicity considered something, but bit her lip, submitting to the fact that Dinah was probably right. “Then...how do I act?”

 

_ “Understanding,  _ like how you were being this morning. Oliver must have noticed the shift, so you've got a bit of catching up to do.”

 

_ “We’re ready! Let's load up,”  _ came Diggle’s deep voice from around the van. 

  
  


Digg, Curtis, and Oliver’s “solution” for Oliver’s new mass seemed to be having him sit in the very back of the van with his wings pointing forward to line the walls. Those on the benches would have to lean against his feathers. Oliver looked quite uncomfortable.

 

“And we’re certain there isn't a better position?” Felicity questioned, first to climb into the van.

 

“Apparently,” said Oliver, winding quite annoyed. Not with Felicity, but with the amount effort it now took just to get into a car.

 

Felicity sat snug next to Oliver in the back. She was cautious of leaning back against his wing, worrying that she'd hit some tendon or mess up the feathers or something. When Oliver moved his wing slightly forward to press into her back, she took it as an invitation to lean backward, and she was thankful.

 

“Sorry,” she whispered anyways, toying with the strip of duct tape that Oliver had around his waist. Waiting on Curtis’s designs, Oliver was wearing an spare hoodie with two large slots cut up from the bottom in the back. The duct tape kept the flaps created by the slits in place. It looked odd, but it definitely wasn't the most flagrant change in Oliver's appearance.

 

“You're fine.” Oliver moved to kiss her temple but Felicity moved and caught his lips. 

 

Dinah and Rene piled into the van, similarly hesitant to lean back.

 

“Sit however you want; I don't mind,” Oliver finally said.

 

Dinah rested against the wing but still kept her back as straight as a board. Rene leaned forward with his elbows on his knees. He seemed uncomfortable with the situation.

 

“You all good back there?” Digg called back, Curtis turned from the passenger seat as well.

 

“A-okay,” Rene answered, in somewhat of a sigh. Felicity held back a somewhat rude comment towards Rene.

 

Dinah seemed to sense this and interrupted. “Where exactly are we going, anyway?”

 

“Campground turned nature reserve, about an hour east of here,” Digg said, starting the car. “No one around; plenty open grasslands.”

 

Felicity nudged Oliver excitedly, trying to get him to look forward to their outing. He smiled purely for her.

 

_ Hmm,  _ Felicity thought. She felt like if she herself miraculously sprouted wings (because that was how she thought of it—miraculous) she'd be over the moon (almost even literally). But she realized that she didn't  _ really  _ know what it would be like. She did have wings in a dream once, though.

 

“No one expects this to go well, you know,” Felicity said. Oliver swung his head to look at her, half-knowing that this was just another time Felicity’s syntax betrayed her. Digg chuckled from the drivers seat, which indicated to Felicity that she messed up. “Oh! Geez, sorry. I meant that we don't expect you to know how this works, the first go-round. No pressure, seriously. You fall or whatever. We just want to help.”

 

Everyone in the car indicated their agreement in one way or another, and Oliver finally smiled genuinely. 

  
  


Felicity spent the ride falling in and out of sleep, incredibly comfortable resting against the soft feathers under Oliver's wings and close to his body. Dinah weren't as comfortable; the feathers they were touching her were far more angular and sleek, with spines like tent poles in the middle of each of the large ones. 

 

Oliver, however, was far less comfortable than all of them, feeling cramped. He wasn't going to say, but he appreciated Rene not leaning on his wings. He didn't know how comfortable he'd be with Rene touching them, and wasn't sure why. Oliver spent the car ride thinking...well, worrying. 

 

He wondered how he'd resign as mayor, how he'd somehow maintain control over his hidden identity. He figured, though, that if his political life as Oliver Queen was over, it would hardly be a problem if he revealed himself as the Green Arrow. It would be impossible to go out in public, or own property, or take Felicity out on dates...Felicity. 

 

Oliver worried if Felicity would be comfortable in the new, uh, sleeping areas he'd created, or would even want to share with him at all. Sleeping together would  _ definitely  _ be different. He wanted to ask Felicity all about this, but he was finding it hard to get her alone. 

  
  


At last, they arrived at the site, parking on the side of the road about half a mile away. They'd have to walk through the forest for a bit, but luckily the woods weren't very dense. 

 

Everyone else climbed out of the van first, and Oliver insisted that he could escape himself. A few ruffled feathers and frustrated grunts later, Oliver managed to extricate himself. Once he'd straightened himself out, Oliver noticed everyone watching him, or waiting.

 

“Uhm...we should get going,” Oliver said, setting off. Everyone followed. Oliver seemed relieved that everyone still saw him as a leader. Felicity, of course, walked right beside him.

 

Oliver's wings sagged to the sides more than he'd be happy with, as he still didn't have complete nerve control. He still had to concentrate for movements that were completely voluntarily. He predicted this would be sorted out in the future and he just needed to get used to them, but it didn't stop him from being rather annoyed with himself. 

 

When they reached the fence into the reserve, Oliver knew they were going to have a problem. Everyone else seemed to recognize this as well. The fence want particularly tall, but it had a line of barbed wire lining its top. 

 

“Uh….hmm,” Diggle tried to think of a way around this obstacle (well, over). As did everyone else. Digg, Dinah, Curtis, and Rene were all experienced with climbing over such fences. Getting Felicity over would be possible, but Oliver...

 

“I'll get wire cutters from the van,” Dinah suggested. She turned to leave, but Oliver stuck one of his wings out as a barrier.

 

“No,” Oliver said. “I'm...gonna jump it.” He backed up from the fence to give himself some running space.

 

A path was cleared for him, but everyone looked alarmed at this. 

 

“Oliver...are you sure?!” Diggle asked as Oliver bent over as if to start running. Oliver shrugged from this position, and lunged forward.

 

It was hard to move quickly, he found, with the added mass on his back. Not only did they seem to push him into the Earth, but when they were spread they slowed him down when they caught air. He tried to angle them so that they pointed forward, but wasn't sure if it worked. 

 

When he reached the fence, he jumped (not as high as he would've normally, unfortunately), sticking his foot into the grate and using that to push off again. He rolled as quickly as he could, essentially doing a somersault over the top of the fence. He felt the tops of his wings snag on the barbed wire...

 

Team Arrow watched as Oliver fell to the ground with a muffled  _ thud  _ and the distinct sound of something snapping.

**Author's Note:**

> TBC 
> 
> I've never written anyone here before except for Oliver...I do hope they're in character. Hopefully the next chapter will have a bit of humor. What does everybody think?


End file.
